Natural Bridge State Park (Kentucky)

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Looking up at the natural bridge

Natural Bridge State Park is a Kentucky state park located in Powell County, Kentucky along the Middle Fork of the Red River, adjacent to the Red River Gorge Geologic Area and surrounded by the Daniel Boone National Forest. Its namesake natural bridge is the centerpiece of the park. The natural bridge geological sandstone arch spans 78 ft and is 65 ft high. This formation has been weather crafted for millions of years. The park is approximately 2,300 acres of which approximately 1,200 acres is dedicated by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission as a nature preserve. In 1981 this land was dedicated into the nature preserves system to protect the geological system and rare species habitat. The first federally endangered Virginia big eared bats recorded in Kentucky were found at Natural Bridge State Park in the 1950s.

The park was founded as a private tourist attraction in 1896 by the Lexington and Eastern Railroad. It became one of Kentucky's original four state parks when that system was established in 1925. There are over 20 miles of trail over uneven terrain from moderate to strenuous difficulty, including trails to White's Branch Arch, Henson's Cave Arch, and other scenic areas. The park's 0.5 mile "Original Trail" to the natural bridge dates from the 1890s. Other trails include the 7.5 mile Sand Gap Trail and the 0.75 mile Balanced Rock Trail. Five miles of the 270-mile Sheltowee Trace National Recreation Trail run through the park, including the Whittleton Trail which connects the park to the Red River Gorge Geologic Area. Disturbing wildlife or collecting plants is not legal in any Kentucky State Park.

Many of Kentucky's finest naturalists and natural resource managers have worked at Natural Bridge: Dr S. Wilson Francis, co-author of "Wildflowers and Ferns of Kentucky"; noted wildlife biologist Dan Dourson; Del Sasser, Chair of the Lees College Biology Department; artist and author Al Cornett; trail chief John Halsey; environmental educator Noelle Theres; and invasive species manager Zeb Weese.

Natural Bridge State Park is a member of the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, and offers guided backpacking trips and natural history educational programs. Annual events open to the public include Herpetology Weekend each May, Natural Arches Weekend each February, and the Kentucky Native Plant Society's Wildflower Weekend each April.

The State Park is also famous for hosting traditional Appalachian square dances each weekend in the summer. For 44 years Richard Jett, former Wolfe County Superindentent of Schools and Mayor of Campton, called these weekly dances, until his death in 2006.